Man Sentenced for Imprisoning Woman in ‘Chamber’ and Using Baseball Bat, Metal Chain as Torture Tools
After admitting that he kept a woman in a “torture chamber” where he raped her and used a baseball bat and metal chain as “instruments of torture” for weeks until her neighbors saw her in distress and called the police, the Ohio man will spend decades in prison.
Marion County Prosecutor Ray Grogan said in a news release that 36-year-old Shane Edward Hooper was given a prison term on Thursday of 50 to 55 1/2 years.
Criminal charges were brought against Hooper for rape, kidnapping, violence, and strangulation. He pleaded guilty to all of them.
After the sentence, Prosecutor Grogan said, “Shane Hooper built a torture chamber and locked this woman in it.” “He’ll be stuck in jail for at least fifty years from now on.”
In May 2023, Hooper kept a woman at her house and beat her with a baseball bat and a metal chain, which the government called “instruments of torture.”
Police say he “escalated his control over the victim” by nailing doors and windows shut so she couldn’t get away. Prosecutors say Hooper put her through a lot of mental pain and threatened to kill her and her family.
The case became public the next month when Hooper moved her to a place on Silver Street in Marion, Ohio, about 50 miles north of Columbus. Watchful neighbors saw that she was in trouble and called the police. When police went to a house to check on someone, they found a hurt 28-year-old woman. Prosecutors said she was taken to the hospital with eight broken ribs, open cuts, and broken bones.
Grogan said, “The brave woman told us she had been praying for help and God heard her,”
On June 7, 2023, Hooper was arrested. According to the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction, he had been on release for eight months after being found guilty of forgery in 2020.
Grogan praised the victim’s bravery and told everyone to be aware of possible threats and call the police if they think someone is trying to hurt them.
Grogan said, “Some good people spoke up, and it’s likely that what they did saved this woman’s life.” “That’s the Marion County spirit I love and know.”